Tasmanian wildlife need our support!

It is estimated that 293,000 animals loose their lives on the road each year in Tasmania. That equals 32 killed animals per hour on average for the year! According to Roadkill Tas, most wildlife is hit by vehicles between dusk and dawn. 50% of these animals had to loose their lives due to us humans driving faster than 80 km/h.

Imagine being a nocturnal animal. You are grazing on the lush grass on the side of the road, everything is quiet around you when all of a sudden you can hear a tremendous noise. You get dazzled by a bright light. A car is racing towards you. You can’t see, don’t know where to go. There is only a 50/50 chance to escape into the right direction.

The lucky ones find their way back into the bush, their safe place. But lots of animals don’t have a chance to escape.

What can I do if I accidentally hit an animal?

Although driving slowly and looking out for wildlife is the best way to avoid accidents, sometimes it just happens. If you do hit an animal there are a few things that you could do:

Stop only if it is safe to do so. Approach the animal slowly. If the animal is dead, pull it off the street to minimise the risk of predators getting run over by cars as well. Best is to use gloves, an old shirt or jacket when you examine the animal. Check the pouch, if it is a female. Often the young survive the crash and could possibly be saved. If the hit animal is still alive, it can also be treated and it might survive. Native animals get stressed easily and even die from stress. You can calm the animal down by keeping it in a warm, dark and quiet place, like a box or a towel, and keep handling to a minimum. Don’t try to feed the injured animal or joey anything. Call assistance immediately to increase the chance of recovery.

Who can I contact for help with orphaned or injured wildlife?

There are several organisations that will be able to help you and give you advice if you come across orphaned or injured wildlife.

Bonorong Wildlife Sancturay

The Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary operates a 24-hour wildlife rescue service and organises a pool of  dedicated volunteers, wildlife carers and vets. Most likely they will be able to find a local wildlife rescuer in their database who can assist you with the rescue.

Call: 0447 264 625 (0447 ANIMAL)

DPIPWE

The Wildlife Management Branch of the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and the Environment (DPIPWE) offers a hotline for Wildlife Incidents as well.

Phone: 1300 827 727

Thanks to everyone who has helped animals in need!

Your support is very much appreciated. All the injured and orphaned animals have their own little personalities which you get to know once you’ve spent a bit of time with them. The wallabies that we took on quickly became a part of the family and it’s amazing to watch them develop their own characters. Some of our ex-orphans have already shown us their offspring. So every single animal that got help will possibly contribute to secure the population of their species.

Click here to find more information about our conservation efforts.